The Enemies Within Our Education system
Education Unions (the N.E.A.), School Administrators and Yes - Even Some Teachers
Posted on 09/05/2011 6:20:34 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
CNN’s Political Ticker isolates this element of Rep. Michele Bachmann’s reliably conservative responses at Sen. Jim DeMint’s political forum in South Carolina today, making it both a headline and lead paragraph:
Painting herself as a “constitutional conservative” Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann told Sen. Jim DeMint’s forum Monday that if elected president she would look to get rid of the Department of Education, among other things.
“Because the Constitution does not specifically enumerate nor does it give to the federal government the role and duty to superintend over education that historically has been held by the parents and by local communities and by state governments,” she said, responding to a question by DeMint, a popular figure among the tea party movement.
The not-so-subtle implication of PT’s prominent placement of this Bachmann statement is that it’s obviously extreme. You know those crazy “constitutional conservatives”! But is it? Abolishing the Department of Education might sound like an ultra-conservative pipe dream — and anything but advisable in the Information Age, when education is key to global competitiveness — but, perhaps, just perhaps, Bachmann has a point.
In the first place, she’s right about the Constitution. But, in the second, does the federal government actually do a better job of educating our children than would state or local governments? Naturally, questions of right and equity enter in. It is, after all, commonly accepted that children have the right to an equal education (although even that could be debated). But as regards efficacy, it’s pretty clear flexibility and freedom to address the needs of individual children enhances education.
Please don’t interpret this as an endorsement of Bachmann’s view; I’m still forming my opinions on education policy. It is, rather, a defense of the debate. The purpose and prowess of the Ed Department ought to be analyzed. And the agency, no less than any other budget-straining bit of the bureaucracy, ought to be held accountable.
This all brings me back to why I love Bachmann as a presidential candidate (if not necessarily as the GOP nominee or actual president): She says what needs to be said to move the public dialogue in a productive direction. Sometimes, she does that by simply speaking truth. Sometimes, as now, she does it by offering up views that can then be debated, discussed, shaped and molded into a more palatable — yet-ever-so-slightly-more-conservative — position in the immediate term — while leaving the possibility of her so-called “extreme” solutions open in the long term.
Dept of Education was Carter’s baby. I think its safe now to throw that baby out!
I like Mrs. Bachmann, but she is a little late. Mrs. Palin brought these subject up a couple weeks ago in Iowa. It great seeing her changing the debate into things that really will mnake a difference. No matter, the more conservative voices the better. Sarah is the trend setter, she will become a candidate, she will dominate the remaining debates and she will win the Presidency!
Every time educational failure is mentioned, the Dems answer is to throw more money at it. This money NEVER gets to the classroom. Instead, it goes to hiring more administrators that are straitly PC (they're EXTREME, but don't tell them), non thinkers, programmed little robots--I say little advisedly, not to describe girth or weight, but their brain.
I recall back in the 70s, once you graduated high school, you could save a bit and buy a HOUSE, or a CAR. Not anymore.
Good question! We don’t need it.
The Enemies Within Our Education system
Education Unions (the N.E.A.), School Administrators and Yes - Even Some Teachers
=======================================================
To keep God out of our schools and teach that Heather Has Two Mommys?
Dept of Labor? Dept of HEW? who needs that? not anyone
who works for a living.
It can be gotten rid of, but it must be done in a very Machiavellian way - First, remove it as a single department and put it under the auspices of say, Health and Human Services. Then, slowly delete the positions within that department.
Just bleed it dry, over the course of a few years.
Do not need Dept. of Education just the Board of Education applied to the seat of learning!!
Sad isn't it. There was a tax from the Spanish American war that was only recently eliminated (about 7 years ago).
I would say at this moment, probably 85% of the Republicans in Congress would be totally opposed to bold moves such as eliminating the Unconstitutional Dept of Mis-Education.
I don't hold out much hope for real reform, unless we have a total economic collapse (which no one wants)
Ok stop proposing solutions that would make our Founders proud :) don't you know government is our Federal family now/sarc
If we had a truly free society, it would likely quickly evolve as you state.
Reagan should take lesson from Obama and selectively apply the law and do it unilaterally from the executive
we do not
Yep. Education and Energy were Carter boondoggles and EPA was Nixons. All are leftist departments that do more harm than good.
I really like her position on the issues :)
Since he had to return to Texas for the wildfire emergency and couldn't make the DeMint forum, I wanted to say at the townhall with Rep. Tim Scott Monday morning, Perry echoed similar views.
Preferring local control, he said while the Dept. of Education might stay around merely as a "repository of best practices" it hadn't educated one child nor had the Dept of Energy created any energy.
Early in his first term Reagan actually tried abolish of the Dept of Education through Congress and, obviously, didn't succeed.
Liking HER MORE, AND MORE..
...and they do all of that for just $38 BILLION. I may be naive, but I think I could do it for only $35 BILLION!
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